The present invention relates to a tool for removing plastic duct material surrounding a fiber optic cable and, more particularly, to a hand-held saw with an adjustable blade depth guide to allow for a variety of different duct materials to be removed without cutting into the underlying fiber cables.
During restoration of a failed fiber optic line, repair time is critical, due to the massive amount of service that is affected by the failure. Some fiber optic cables may handle as many as a million circuits of communication traffic, which will all be xe2x80x9cfailedxe2x80x9d until restoration of service is achieved by splicing together the failed fibers. Quickly getting access to the fibers for restoration and placing a restoration splice into the failed fibers will reduce the number of blocked calls, as well as the length of the service outage.
In most cases, fiber optic cables are installed in ducts that are placed in underground right-of-ways, where the plastic duct material (usually an HDPE material) will protect the cables from the harsh environment. Although this duct material works well in protecting the cable, it usually comprises a relatively hard composition that is difficult to remove when a technician needs to gain access to a failed cable. The prior art removal process calls for the use of hand tools, such as a pair of heavy-duty shears, to cut away the duct in the region of the cable failure. These tools are cumbersome to use, where a technician may often need up to an hour to remove a duct from around the cable. Thus, a need remains in the art for a tool that a field technician can use to quickly and easily remove the duct from around a failed fiber cable.
The need remaining in the prior art is addressed by the present invention, which relates to a tool for removing plastic duct material surrounding a fiber optic cable and, more particularly, to a hand-held, motorized saw with an adjustable blade depth guide to allow for a variety of different thicknesses of duct material to be removed without cutting into the underlying fiber cables.
In accordance with the present invention, a hand-held saw is formed to include an adjustable depth guide to control the depth a saw blade extends below the tool, thus adjusting the cut depth for different thicknesses of duct material. In one embodiment, a set of four adjustable positions is used. A locking pin connected between a saw blade cover and the depth guide may be used to lock in and control the depth of cut of the tool. The tool may be oriented with respect to the duct so as to allow for either radial or axial cuts to be made.
Advantageously, the use of an adjustable depth cut allows for various types and thicknesses of duct material to be cut away without cutting into or damaging the underlying fibers within the cable. Moreover, the use of a motorized saw allows for the cut to be made quickly and efficiently.